Come What May
by August08
Summary: He had everything he could have hoped for. His brothers, a loving guardian, a roof over his head. But, when the king passes away under mysterious circumstances and a tyrant takes power, Mikey and his brothers are hunted like wild animals. Alone and afraid, Mikey does what he can to keep his brothers safe. But sometimes Fate has plans of its own. AU. Expansion of Come Morning Light.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N** : I was just going to leave Come Morning Light alone and leave it as a one-shot. But, the more I re-read it, the more it begged to be expanded upon. So, I caved and began writing again. Here is the longer version of Come Morning Light: Come What May. I hope you enjoy it.

 **Note** : Instead of completely deleting this story and starting over (since it's only one chapter right now), I rewrote the ending of the chapter and replaced the original. I think this rewrite is a lot better than the first go round. I hope you all think the same.

 **Disclaimer** : I own nothing associated with TMNT or the lyrics of _Safe and Sound_ which will appear at random throughout the story. They all belong to their respective owners. I am simply borrowing.

* * *

The tiny flame from the lantern did little to illuminate the dark room. A small, young turtle sat in a chair outside his parent's bedroom. His legs dangled over the edge of the chair, eyes locked on the floor. Beside him, one of his baby brothers began to whimper. The six-year-old hopped down off the chair and went to tend to his brother. The stone floor was cold underfoot. He reached between the bars of the handmade crib his father had built for the triplets and gently ran a hand over the whimpering baby's cheek.

"It's okay, Leo," the boy whispered. "The doctor will cure Mom and Dad. They'll be fine."

The boy looked up when he heard the door to his parent's room open. He hurried over to see who was coming out, hoping that it was one of his parents. Sadly, it was the doctor. The aged crocodile had a worn look on his face.

"Are my Mom and Dad going to be okay, doctor Leatherhead?" the boy asked, still holding on to hope.

Leatherhead shook his head. "I am sorry, little one. I did all I could, but the plague was too great."

"They're..." The boy's breath hitched. "They're not...Will they wake up?"

Leatherhead bowed his head, kneeling down to look the boy in the eye. "Not in this life, little one," he confessed.

No one. He had no one. His parents were dead and he was all alone, and with three babies who hadn't even grown into their shells yet. At that moment, Leonardo began to whimper again.

"Michelangelo, is there anyone I can bring you to?" Leatherhead asked.

Michelangelo shook his head. "They're all gone," he whispered. "The plague took them." He looked up at the doctor with tears filling his bright blue eyes. "Doctor, what's going to happen to us?"

"I don't know, child," Leatherhead replied, honestly. "Perhaps, I can bring you to a Children's House."

Michelangelo shook his head, tears streaming steadily down his face. "No!" he declared. "I won't let us get torn apart. I won't leave my brothers alone."

He hurried over to the crib and put his hands on the bars. Leatherhead stood up.

"Michelangelo, you cannot stay here by yourself," he said.

"I can and I will," the boy proclaimed. "I'll make it work. I promised Mom and Dad that I would look after Leo, Raph and Donnie. I promised I would never let anything happen to them. And, I'm going to keep that promise."

"Michelangelo," Leatherhead started.

"Just leave," Michelangelo demanded, squeezing his eyes tightly closed. "Leave us alone."

Leatherhead sighed. The boy was stubborn for only six years. No doubt a trait he had inherited from his father. The doctor went to the front door and opened it. He motioned for the men who were waiting outside to enter. Michelangelo never opened his eyes as he listened to the sounds of the men taking his parent's bodies away.

"Michelangelo, I can't, in good conscience, leave you and your brothers here alone," Leatherhead said.

"Well, you're going to have too," Michelangelo told him. "Because we're not going anywhere."

"They'll come for you," Leatherhead tried to reason. "They'll take you to a Children's House."

Michelangelo opened his eyes, his brow furrowed deeply with anger and determination. "We're not going anywhere," he whispered, his voice almost like a growl.

"Doctor, we're ready," one of the assistants said.

"I'll be back for you," Leatherhead told Michelangelo.

The boy watched the doctor and his assistant leave. The door closed and he was all alone. He looked down at his brothers. They were all awake and looking up at him as if asking him what they were going to do. Michelangelo reached through the bars and ran a hand over Leonardo's forehead.

"I hope you can forgive me for what I'm about to do," he whispered.

* * *

An hour later, Leatherhead walked through the door to find the crib empty. He hurried through the house, but there was no sign of any of the turtle brothers. He found Michelangelo's room. The bed clothes had been stripped and torn. Leatherhead exhaled heavily, running a hand over the top of his head.

"Michelangelo, what have you done?" he breathed.

* * *

Reviews are welcome, flames are not


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N** : I've rewritten chapter one, mostly because I didn't like it and didn't like how it flowed. A shout out to Renard bleu for pointing out the flaw. Thank you so much! I wasn't liking this story with how the first chapter went, but since you pointed out how wrong it felt that the king came in too early, I've reworked it and now I've fallen back in love with the story. Again, thank you so much! Please keep me on the straight and narrow :)

 **Disclaimer** : see chapter one

* * *

Michelangelo was jarred awake when he heard a baby's cry. He blinked the sleep out of his eyes and looked down at the three infants nestled in their blankets on the ground. Donatello was fussing. Michelangelo rummaged in his knapsack and pulled out a bottle of milk. He then picked up his fussing brother and held the bottle up to the infant's mouth. The baby instantly latched on and began feeding. Michelangelo laid his head up against the brick wall and closed his eyes. However, before he could drift off again, the other two began whimpering.

"Seriously?" Michelangelo whined. _This is what you wanted, Mikey,_ he told himself. _No one said taking care of three babies by yourself was going to be easy._

Donatello pulled away from the bottle and began crying as well, joining Leonardo and Raphael.

"Oh, for the love of," Michelangelo said. He sighed. "Okay. Okay. Let's try something."

He laid down the bottle and carefully picked up the other two in his arms. As he rocked them, he began singing a lullaby his mother used to sing to him when he couldn't sleep or had a nightmare.

 _I remember tears streaming down your face when I said I'll never let you go_  
 _And all those shadows almost killed your light_  
 _I remember you said don't leave me here alone_  
 _But all that's dead and gone and passed tonight_

 _Just close your eyes t_ _he sun is going down_  
 _You'll be all right no one can hurt you now_  
 _Come morning light you and I'll be safe and sound_

His brother's fussing slowly started to subside, but he kept singing.

 _Don't you dare look out your window, darling everything's on fire_  
 _The war outside our door keeps raging on_  
 _Hold on to this lullaby e_ _ven when the music's gone, gone_

Michelangelo chanced pausing in the song and listened. His brothers were out cold. He sighed in relief and closed his eyes, laying his head back against the wall. In a matter of minutes, all four brothers were fast asleep.

* * *

He knew leaving town was a bad idea, but he had no choice if he wanted to keep his brothers together. Michelangelo followed the old road leading out of town, leaving everything he knew behind for something better. At least, that's what he hoped. With his cloak pulled tightly around his body and his brothers tied securely to his back and chest, Michelangelo began his long journey towards a brighter future.

* * *

Sensitive ears perked up when they detected footsteps coming down the hallway outside the library. Splinter looked up from his book when the library doors opened and a messenger ran in. The king bookmarked the page and closed the book, setting it to one side. He stood up from his chair and went to meet the young man. The young raccoon stopped short in front of the king and bowed, breathing heavily.

"What is the urgency, young scribe?" Splinter asked.

The raccoon straightened and held out a scroll that was tied with a thin piece of twine. Splinter frowned and took the scroll.

"It's from the doctor of the town of Jade," the raccoon said.

"Jade?" Splinter echoed as he cut the twine and unrolled the scroll.

His eyes scanned the letter, his eyes widening and ears falling back against his head. The raccoon became nervous.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I'm needed," Splinter told him. "Send for my carriage and driver. I must make due haste for Jade."

The young man nodded and ran off again, almost tripping up in his tail. Splinter hurried to his bedchamber to get ready for the trip. As he was coming out of his room and heading down the hall, his adviser, Saki, was coming in the opposite direction.

"Your Highness, what is this I hear about you leaving Sol?" Saki asked.

"And old friend has been taken by the plague and his children are missing," Splinter told him.

"You're leaving because children are missing?" Saki asked incredulously. "Sire, they're probably runaways. Children who don't want to be taken to Children's Houses run away all the time."

Splinter's ears twitched in annoyance. He knew all too well that Saki never approved of his compassion towards his subjects, especially the well being of children. Splinter believed that children were the kingdom's future. Since his wife passed away from the plague, and since they never had any children, Splinter had always wanted to adopt and raise a son or daughter to be the next great ruler of the kingdom of Virya.

"It is difficult for infants to run away on their own, Saki," Splinter replied.

"Then, perhaps they were taken to a Children's House, after all," Saki told him.

Splinter entered the outer courtyard to find his carriage and driver waiting for him. "These children are missing and need my help, Saki. I will return when I have them."

"Sire, please, reconsider," Saki urged. "They are just kids."

"Children are the kingdom's future, Saki," Splinter reminded him. "They may not be blood, but I will try and make them feel like part of a family again."

With that, he climbed into the carriage and closed the door. Saki could only watch as the horse pulled away. He took a deep breath and exhaled sharply. The king's compassion was going to be the death of him.

* * *

Michelangelo gazed sleepily up at the setting sun. He yawned deeply as he continued to trek along the deserted road. He had lost track of the days. Leonardo, Raphael and Donatello had fallen asleep hours ago. Michelangelo softly sang his mother's lullaby to himself, trying to ward off the demons of doubt and despair. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea. He was putting his brother's lives at risk.

As he continued to sing, tears started streaming down his face. He wanted to hear his mother's voice again, feel the strength of his father's arms. He missed the smell of his mother's cooking, missed the sound of his father's saw as he cut logs for the hearth. Michelangelo tried to banish the tears, but they just kept coming. He stopped in the middle of the road and broke down into uncontrollable sobs.

He didn't want to be alone anymore. He wanted his brothers to have a roof over their heads and nice warm food. His stomach rumbled in hunger. He hadn't eaten anything in days. Raphael, upon hearing his brother's sobs, woke up and began fussing. Michelangelo held him close to his chest and began singing. However, the tears and exhaustion warped his voice. Michelangelo left the road and sat down in the shade of the trees by the road side. He untied the sling housing Leonardo and Donatello and held his brothers in his arms. He closed his eyes and drifted off, exhaustion completely taking over.

* * *

The trip from Sol to Jade was a rough week and a half trip. Splinter looked out the window at the dry and dying trees. This summer had been horrible for lack of rain. Nothing would last long out in the scorching sun. Splinter just hoped he wasn't too late in finding the children.

"Sire, we're a few days out of Jade," the young driver said. "We've seen nothing. Surely this is a lost cause."

"We will find them, Casey," Splinter assured him. "I am sure of it."

Casey Jones sighed as he turned his eyes back on the road. Then, off in the distance, he thought he saw something orange and green in the shade of the trees.

"Sire, there's something up head," he announced.

Splinter looked through the window, his eyes landing on the same thing Casey saw. "Casey! Stop the carriage!" he commanded.

"Whoa!" Casey told the horse, pulling on the reigns.

As soon as the carriage stopped, Splinter jumped out and ran to the side of the road. He dropped to his knees, fingers going to the children's necks. Splinter sighed in relief. They were still alive, but they were weak.

"Casey, help me get them into the carriage," Splinter ordered.

Casey jumped down and ran to help the king. He took the infants while Splinter took the eldest. When the children were safely inside the carriage with Splinter, Casey climbed back into his seat and snapped the reigns. The horse took off at a fast run. They were nowhere close to Jade, but maybe there was another town close by where they would be able to nurse the kids back to health.

Splinter held the brothers in his arms, holding them close. "I've found you, little ones," he whispered. "And by your father's blessing, I will never leave you."

* * *

Reviews are welcome, flames are not


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